


Best In Show

by kalypsobean



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, cat show
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-27
Updated: 2014-01-27
Packaged: 2018-01-10 05:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1155830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kalypsobean/pseuds/kalypsobean
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jensen's happy to be something of a loner on the ArkLaTex Cat Show circuit, but between Misha's antics and the klutzy new kid nobody likes because he acts like a normal person, he and his cat, Maverick, are in for a new addition to their family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Best In Show

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the [spn_reversebang 2013](http://spn-reversebang.livejournal.com) for a prompt by the incomparable [wataru-kisugi](http://wataru-kisugi.livejournal.com). Please please please take a few moments to drop by the [art post](http://wataru-kisugi.livejournal.com/7519.html) and share some love for the wonderful drawing and banners that inspired this fic. They really are amazing and I am so glad I stayed up until 5am to claim the initial prompt.

  
[](http://wataru_kisugi.livejournal.com/7519.html)

Jensen really hates these things. If Maverick could be judged over YouTube he'd never come; but he knows it would never work. Maverick would probably hate him for it too, bastard that he can be; he loves the attention.

There's some new kid on the other side of the benching area; he's too tall and too loud and very enthusiastic and seems to be putting everyone off. Apparently the kid doesn't realise everyone already has their own groups and routines and he's just putting the balance out and making enemies in the process. Seriously, he's had to do the whole country club thing with his grandparents and these people have the 'snobby little old society lady' thing down pat. If you're male, new, or new and male, you're screwed. Jensen learned to ignore it because it suits him, but he's seen more social people wilt and change their showing schedule because of it. It's a pity, though, because his stealthy spying reveals that the kid has a gorgeous silver kitten who will probably beat them all in the judging ring, and he'd like to see their faces when that happens. He tries waving to get the kid's attention; the kid looks at him, briefly, but then he's called to the judging ring and Jensen breathes out, in relief or release from stasis he's not sure. Maverick is making noises too, probably annoyed that Jensen has abandoned him for a human, so Jensen turns back to his bench and unlocks the cage. Maverick slips out before Jensen can open the door all the way, and comes to Jensen for petting before walking around the bench and settling by his water dish.

Jensen's stupidly proud of Maverick. Even his mother laughs at him as she buys a metric ton of toys (that he never touches, because he's smart and loves Jensen best), and Jensen tries not to take it to heart. But then Misha's always around to remind him what a crazy cat man actually looks like, so he doesn't feel so bad; it's just weird, going back to work on Monday and hearing everyone else talk about their weekends and parties and his story is almost invariably 'went on road trip with cat, won ribbon, got back last night'.

 

Misha's gotten quite good at creeping up on Jensen, but this time he's wearing a multicoloured hat which might vaguely resemble a cat if it had been the unfortunate victim of an accident involving paint and small children, so Jensen sees him coming and doesn't flinch when hands land on his shoulders. It would be easier to request a benching space near Misha, but every time he thinks of it he weighs up the benefit of not having to risk Misha scaring him half to death (or a panic attack, either way) against having Misha near him all day, sometimes two days, and he never does it. At least this way, Misha will leave again in a few minutes, and there's some peace and quiet to be had.

"Seen the new kid?" Misha says, instead of hello. 

Jensen nods and busies himself by straightening the curtains around Maverick's cage and checking the litter box. Misha keeps talking and Jensen listens with half an ear, waiting for some point where he's actually required to participate.

"Wait, Padalecki? Isn't he that kid, you know, the one who had that mixed cat you were on about forever ago?"

"That's him," Misha says. "Not a name you forget." Jensen grunts, because he kind of did, but Misha doesn't even seem to want to know whether Jensen had indeed, forgotten. "Tall, dark, klutzy and loves cats, just your type I should think."

"Oh hell no," Jensen says, and Maverick miaows in sync. "I don't have a type, Misha. I put up with you, remember?"

"But you don't love me," Misha says. "My awesomeness is wasted on you."

 

The conversation is, mercifully, cut short when Misha goes to collect his cat from the judging ring. Jensen looks at the big clock on the wall, then at his catalogue. He still has time to wait, so he settles back against the table and goes back to people-watching. Maverick is in a quiet mood, so he gets to watch the Padalecki kid come back and get ignored until it's their turn in the ring. He's gotten taller since last year's Houston show. Jensen gets around to thinking that he might not even object to Misha trying to set them up, at least where Jared can see. He still holds out hope that he managed to dissuade Misha's plotting, but even Maverick looks at him dolefully, like he knows that his human friend is going to have a lot less time to give him attention, afterwards.

Jensen sets up Maverick in the judging ring, mindful to dab just a bit of vanilla on Maverick's nose to disguise the scent of the other cats who've been there so far, and is the last exhibitor to leave. This is the worst part of the day for Jensen, because he hates being away from Maverick in a strange place, even though he knows the judges will be gentle and nothing will go wrong. It's just plain unsettling; Maverick is usually always near him, and this is the important part and he's not there. He couldn't change anything if he was; but he's antsy and fidgety until judging is over, just thinking of someone else handling his cat.

Misha appears at his elbow and waits with him until he can go pick Maverick up and take him back to the benching area; Jensen used to be a lot worse, but Misha started distracting him and after a few shows he got a bit more used to it. He's never completely relaxed, but he's better than he was. He still gets a touch of the shakes and nausea if it's an open show, and he's already spent quite a few silent moments thanking the cat show gods that this isn't one of those. It's bad enough getting Maverick out of the house and on his best behaviour when a judge isn't around, but Jensen's got this thing in his head where he can't leave the benching area or even turn around because some stupid kid or a really curious stranger or even Misha on a lark might get too close and he'll end up cleaning litter off the floor and having to spend twenty minutes brushing out Maverick's coat where someone's spilled soda on him. But that didn't happen today, it won't happen tomorrow, and it's just a nightmare he hasn't had yet.

 

The judge leaves and he almost bumps into someone tall, dark and weedy in his haste to get to Maverick. He mumbles an apology but doesn't stop moving. Maverick looks at him and Jensen sure it's the 'I was just fine' look, but he's careful to use both hands and hold Maverick close as he goes back to the benching area.

Maverick is in two more rings so Jensen is a bit harried come time to go back to his hotel. He's always grateful when the shows are near hotels where pets are allowed; it means he can go back to his room and collapse. Once or twice a year it's close enough for him to go home, and a couple of times he's stayed over at Misha's (never again), he stays with Chris when he's showing Maverick in Oklahoma, but he prefers to be alone.

Misha says that's why he's got such an affectionate cat, but privately Jensen thinks Misha's one to talk, what with having a Sphinx.

 

Maverick falls asleep just as soon as Jensen lets him out of the cage, so after a shower and a few minutes lying on the bed, he heads down to the bar to get his own food. He laid out some wet food for Maverick which he's sure will be all gone by the time he gets back upstairs, but he's been daydreaming about a steak he hasn't cooked himself with a cat winding around his legs making whining sounds since someone yelled 'Cat out!' around mid-afternoon. Even though everybody knows what they're supposed to do, there's always a few amateurs and well-meaning friends who take the chance to run around madly and scare every cat they pass. He'd seen the kid grab his cat just in time to avoid someone bumping into the bench and he'd winced. Nobody was really happy about it, but nothing could really be done until after, when the offenders could be escorted out. Jensen just hoped that that was the last time, and promised himself a treat to de-stress. Maverick is going to sleep so that he can be awake and pester Jensen when he's the one trying to rest, and pack so that they can leave right after judging, so Jensen figures he has two hours to eat and drink and have some time to himself in the hotel restaurant before heading back up.

 

His plan for a quiet, early night was derailed, however, when Misha dragged the kid over.

"Jared, this is Jensen. Jensen, Jared. Don't be your normal grumpy self!"

Jensen can just see the night ending in shots and some kind of uncomfortable and highly awkward situation. 

"Hi," Jared says as he sits down opposite Jensen, uninvited. "I saw you today. The Bombay, right?" 

Jensen nods, seeing no way that he can get out of this politely, and starts to plot his evil scheme of revenge on Misha for setting him up, without even a warning. Unless that morning's ramble counted as a warning, which it didn't at the time but really Jensen should have known better than to think he'd gotten out of it.

Jared is talking a mile a minute, just like Misha does except Jensen doesn't even think he needs to pretend to be listening or make an effort to respond. The time between Jared sitting down and Jensen's steak arriving is filled with Jared talking about his cats and dogs and probably a bird, or a person who is named after a bird. Why anyone would have two large dogs in the same house as show cats is beyond Jensen - he'd be paranoid about infection and injuries and paying enough attention to them all - but apparently Jared is making it work and has taken in another dog from a failed relationship. "I love Maine Coons, they're so friendly, you know everyone says they're great family cats and great with other animals, and so when I wanted to start showing purebreds I looked into it, and I visited a breeder and I met Silver Bullet and he was so perfect, real friendly but shy at the same time, but I put out my hand and he just sniffed at me and climbed up to my shoulder and I fell in total love with him and now, well, we're a huge family. But Bullet's my baby, he's still so small but he gets on great with the dogs, and he follows me around the house and tries to type for me when I'm on the computer, you should see it, it's the most adorable thing."

Jensen imagines Maverick doing any of that and it doesn't work. Maverick needs all of his free time given in affection and play, and if Jensen has to work late or misses the bus home, well, Maverick makes his displeasure known. 

He doesn't realise he's talking until Jared interrupts to ask if he can dip his wedges in Jensen's mustard sauce.

Jensen gives Misha a death glare when he returns from the bar, but Misha barrels over a verbal reproof with the announcement that he's going to go to the club down the road with Mark and Mikey and the implied demand that Jensen come too.

Jared's the one who says he's tired and won't be going, so Jensen says he'd rather stay in too, and Misha has to accept it for the innuendo it could be (if Jared didn't have so much energy and Jensen wasn't praying for everyone to be quiet and disappear) since technically, that was his aim. Jensen thanks Jared but Jared breezily waves it off and says clubs aren't his thing anyway and it's about time he went to check on his baby.

Jensen escapes to the elevator before Jared finishes paying for his food and for once, he doesn't even strip before he falls asleep.

Jensen wakes up to Maverick pawing at his face and sun poking in through the windows. He's not late, exactly, but he has to prepare everything as economically as possible in order to pack, check out, and have Maverick's cage set up on time. Again, he's tremendously grateful that the designated show hotel is close and it's easy to get to the show hall. Simple things can mean the most, after all. Like how he notices that Misha clearly did not get enough sleep and still has a paper bracelet on his wrist from the club.

"Misha," he says, "Bunny's in your pocket." Misha is wearing cargo pants and Jensen bites his lip in order to keep his serious face on as Misha checks each oversized pouch and pocket. Jensen has always found superstition a bit pointless, not a waste of energy so much as a distraction, but Misha is a big believer and so Jensen finds it easy to poke fun when he can. Bunny has been brought to every show since Misha started showing, and Jensen's not sure if it's a good luck charm or a comfort toy, but it's now almost as bald as Misha's cat from all the handling.

And it's in Miss Kate's cage, right where Misha left it. 

Misha is not very amused, but Jensen just shrugs and tilts his head towards Jared, who's just setting up and looks a bit the worse for wear as well. Jensen has a moment where he wonders if he's the only one taking this seriously. He checks that Maverick is comfortable (or, asleep, as the case may be) and goes over.

"Everything alright?" he says.

Jared seems torn between lighting up and crying. "It's nothing, just some news from home."

Jensen nods. Jared will tell him if he wants to; as a stranger he has no right to pry. But he hears whispering around him and decides to take the conversation on a different track.

"Jared, hey, you're going to be doing the ArkLaTex circuit, right?" 

Jared just shrugs, and someone says it's time for the final rings, so Jensen has to go back to Maverick. "People can be a bit difficult sometimes, don't you think?" he says as he crouches down to get at the food container in his bag, beneath the table.

Jensen isn't one of those obnoxious people who puts their cat's ribbons on their cage for everyone to see and Maverick to pull down and attempt to eat. He has a wall in his study, which used to be the laundry before the washer packed up and died and he arranged to share with Mrs Ferris down the hall in exchange for helping her with her groceries and odd jobs. There will still be space on the wall after today, so worrying which ones he'll take down or whether he'll put up another cork board can wait for a few weeks. Even Maverick is subdued (never let it be said his cat doesn't understand things), and Jensen won't admit to promising treats to make up for it if anyone asks. Sure, he's got another red ribbon, another blue ribbon, but it's just been an off day and he'd been hoping for a rosette, at least. Misha certainly seems to be enjoying it; he keeps popping up at weird times to report on Jared's progress. He wanders past, carrier in hand, to say goodbye, and Jensen is grateful to have one more ring to go, because it means the conversation can't last long. "Jared has charmed the lady with the blue hair and the pink floral dress, she wants to bake him cookies. You need to move on that. Mrs Ferris' cookies are much more enjoyable." Jensen shoos him away, but Misha keeps talking despite all indications Jensen wants to be left alone with his cat to mentally prepare to be beat down once more. "I'm going to bench next to you in Houston, Jensen, so you be on your best behaviour. I need to look classy."

Apparently, Silver Bullet's results were not as interesting to Misha as their future relationship prospects, so Jensen was left to find those out on his own. It was surprisingly easy; he almost bumps into Jared on the way to Maverick's final ring, and Jared's holding a blue ribbon with a matching rosette. Jensen gives him a thumbs up, and Jared nodded, but that is all before Jensen and Maverick are swept along and Jared gets ambushed by the ladies who love him now that Silver Bullet has proven to be competition.

Jensen takes his time packing up. He's lucky, in that Maverick is still on his best behaviour and happily settles in his carrier. Jensen will not admit to cheating and keeping Maverick's carrier as his bed and food place, but it does make things a lot easier when it comes to packing up. This way, Maverick is safe while he takes the cage and his supply bag to the car and he doesn't have the drama he often sees of cats not wanting to go in their carriers or having to decide what to take on the first trip down.

Sometimes he wonders how people can show cats and be so clueless about them. 

 

It's when he's done a last check of his benching area and is taking Maverick out to the car that he hears someone running behind him. "Jensen, wait!"

It's Jared.

Jensen mentally apologises to Maverick; it's somewhat hot and he doesn't want Misha passing messages and inserting lewd comments into them, so he waits for Jared to catch up. 

 

Jared apologises for not being able to talk before, but Jensen waves it off; it happens, especially during finals and in that crowd. 

"I was wondering, though, if maybe you wouldn't mind if I asked to bench near you? Misha's great and all but I don't want to be around him all day and I don't know anyone else, even from before, you know? It's okay if you say no, I'm like a total stranger, but it would be cool, and I promise to disinfect everything so you don't get dog on your precious supplies and..."

Jensen holds up a hand. He's entered Maverick for Houston already, and Garden Ridge after that. 

"It's fine, Jared, I don't mind," he says, and he kind of doesn't. If nothing else, if everyone avoids Jared he'll get relative peace and quiet by proxy; it's not his first thought, though, which is 'yes please' and he doesn't know where that came from. He silently swears never to tell Misha.

The wrinkles fade from Jared's face and he seems a lot younger and bouncier for a moment.

"Thanks man!" he says. "That's awesome, I promise you won't regret it."

"See that I don't," Jensen says. "Hang on a sec." He scrabbles in his pocket and finds one of his cards, thankfully not already packed away in the car. "Call me and let me know where you're entered, we can maybe have a proper dinner?"

Jared nods. "Like, not in the same bar as Misha? Sounds a plan." 

 

Then Jensen finds himself handing over his phone so Jared can type his number in ("that way you'll know it's me") and then Jared's checking his watch ("oh my god my mama will be worried if I don't leave soon") and disappearing. Jensen stands still for a second, and then he takes Maverick to his car. He is really not sure what just happened, or how, but he thinks he might like it.

Maybe. 

 

His phone beeps and he pulls it out before he gets in the car.

_Thnx 4 all the fish._

 

Jensen laughs and puts the car in drive, ready to head back home and into the outside world. He's kind of hoping that this week at work they ask how his weekend was.

"What do you think, Maverick?" he says. "Classic rock or Top 40?"

He flicks on the radio, just loud enough to mute the sound of the road under his tyres. He'll tell them he had the best steak in the state and met someone.

_Two years later..._

Jared sometimes can't believe he was ever new to showing cats, let alone that he survived without it for so long. He's been benching with Jensen, Misha and Mikey for two years now, and he honestly thinks his heart would break if they ever stopped. Realistically, he knows he'll still see Jensen, even if he refuses to move in until the dogs go (Jared's working on it, he's sure as hell not giving up Sadie, but he knows Jensen doesn't want the kittens to be scared and they may just have to compromise somehow, like buy a really big place together so that they can even have an area set aside for breeding and he totally has not thought about this at all), but it just wouldn't be the same without their weekends spent doing largely nothing and being forced to actually talk just to pass the time. Jensen has this annoying habit of talking to his cat, but still.

Jensen had had a bit of a fit the first time Silver Bullet won the Allbreed ribbon, and withheld physical affection for three weeks, until Maverick placed ahead of them at the next show. Misha had been the icebreaker there, staging a fight with Mikey in the carpark that had made Jensen laugh and given Jared the opportunity to be the metaphorical bigger man and offer to sit out if Jensen would take turns. Jensen had claimed Maverick's feelings were hurt, but Jared knows it would kill Jensen to drive all the way to Arkansas and not compete, as much as it would kill him to do the same and not come home with a rosette. Jared has faith, simple optimistic faith, that if that hadn't broken them up, nothing will. Especially not after finding out about Misha and Mikey by walking in on them in Chris' apartment.

Jared's really lucky that he has Jensen, and Jensen's friends, and Silver Bullet. His Mama told him that and he'd laughed it off, because being sentimental to his Mama is like admitting to an engagement, and he'd like to keep control over his wedding, but he feels it inside like a warm glow around his heart when he thinks about it.

"What do you say, ready to go look pretty and win some prizes?" he says, and Silver Bullet looks at him like he's picked up one too many bad habit from Jensen, then tosses his head. He smiles at Jensen as they trade places at the benching area. He can't think of anywhere else he'd rather be.

**Author's Note:**

> For more information about cat shows, the TICA has a guide on their [site](http://www.tica.org/public/showing.php).  
> More about the history and nature of the cats in this fic can be found here:  
> [Maine Coon](http://www.tica.org/public/breeds/mc/intro.php) (Silver Bullet)  
> [Bombay](http://www.tica.org/public/breeds/bo/intro.php) (Maverick)  
> [Sphinx](http://www.tica.org/public/breeds/sx/intro.php) (Miss Kate)


End file.
